MAC Fashion Sets: Nail Lacquer Review Round-up

MAC is not known for an excellent nail polish formula. Sometimes they do it right, but they often create some major misses that tend to suffer from too thin/too thick consistencies, streaking, and poor pigmentation. As is generally the case, the set of sixteen matching nail lacquers was a mixed bag but with more winners than real losers. Pigmentation wasn’t a problem with most of the shades, but I found several of them to be on the streakier side with some more readily covered with a thicker second coat. There were also a handful of shades that were lovely to apply!

The other downside was that a few of the nail lacquers did not match well with the lipstick/lipgloss (Angel, Impassioned, Razzledazzler, Rebel, Snob, and Spice were among the least matching, particularly in tone, not just slightly lighter/darker).

I think MAC has accelerated the price point of their nail lacquers far too quickly–$16 is more than a lipstick or a gloss! It’s $2 less than NARS, the same or $2 less than Deborah Lippmann (depending on the type of polish, as some of hers are $16 and others are $18), $2 MORE than Illamasqua (one of the best polish formulas I’ve ever tried), and $2 more than Butter London. And frankly? At that price tag, MAC is giving you less than the brands I just mentioned–0.34 fl. oz. vs. 0.50 fl. oz. 0.50 fl. oz. is the standard lacquer size (China Glaze, Essie, OPI, etc. all have this size as well). This formula needs to be on point to command a $16 price tag when there are nail polish niche brands where all they do is nail polish have excellent formulas. The nail lacquers have increased in price faster than other comparable price points at MAC (e.g. lipsticks, glosses, and eyeshadows go up $0.50 every year).

I very specifically removed price from the overall rating so that a $30 formula can be compared to a $3 formula with no boost/decrease because of the price–you are the only one who can decide what is too expensive, just right, or not worth it. As a buyer, I’m most interested in quality, and then I’ll figure out if the quality-to-price-ratio is worth it to me or maybe the color is so original that I’m willing to pay a higher price — or maybe it’s so cheap that I’ll accept that it streaks or is powdery. I try to shed light on situations where the price seems out of line with the brand’s position in the market, against competitors, or if the price/quantity ratio is unusually low or high.

MAC’s lacquers are packaged in a cylindrical bottle (though it has some tapering) and a rubberized cap, and this type of cap normally brings packaging scores up to 5/5, but because it’s awkward to hold (it’s stubby and oddly shaped when gripped), it ends up being a wash. Though it has been an issue in the past, I didn’t have any problems with the brush–they all seemed fine and didn’t have any splaying issues.

The best shades were: Chestnut, Girl About Town, Morange, Pink Nouveau, and Russian Red (A). A good but not great shade was Impassioned (A-). The most under-performing shades were: Saint Germain (C+) and Snob (B-). The rest were middle-of-the-road shades with mostly Bs and a few B+s.

Availability: Based on the information I have received from MAC, the distribution of these shades is regional. I cannot confirm the extent of non-regional shades being available online for your region (e.g. whether all of these will be available on the UK website). I can confirm only that for North America, all shades are available for purchase online. Only the North America-specific shades will be available in-stores on May 3rd, 2012. Select Macy’s will also carry Latin America & Middle East region-specific shades.

North America: Chestnut, Girl About Town, Myth, Rebel, Russian Red, Snob, Spice; all are limited edition at this time, but MAC will be adding Girl About Town and Snob to the permanent range in JulyAsia Pacific: Angel, Morange, Impassioned, Peachstock, Ravishing, Razzledazzler, Saint Germain; all are limited edition at this time, but MAC will be adding Girl About Town, Impassioned, Morange, Saint Germain, and Snob to the permanent range in JulyEurope & Africa: Impassioned, Morange, Myth, Rebel, Russian Red, Saint Germain, Spice; all are limited edition at this time, but MAC will be adding Impassioned, Morange, and Saint Germain, to the permanent range in JulyLatin America & Middle East: Girl About Town, Impassioned, Morange, Pink Nouveau, Please Me, Russian Red, Snob; all are limited edition at this time, but MAC will be adding Girl About Town, Impassioned, Morange, and Snob to the permanent range in July

The Glossover

One major downside was that a few of the nail lacquers did not match well with the lipstick/lipgloss (Angel, Impassioned, Razzledazzler, Rebel, Snob, and Spice were among the least matching, particularly in tone, not just slightly lighter/darker). I think this is important, because the concept of the collection is very matchy-matchy, you know? Being a little lighter/darker is acceptable, but getting the undertone wrong is less so.

Where to Buy

Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.

Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!

Please note that the photos included in this post are for summary purposes only–there are four additional photos for each lipstick shade that have been excluded in this post but are available in the set’s original post: one product photos, one swatch (diffused flash), and two swatches (studio lighting).

MAC Myth Lipglass, Lipstick, Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Lipstick ($14.50 for 0.10 oz.) has been such a top-seller that it has now inspired a Lipglass ($14.50 for 0.17 fl. oz.) and Nail Lacquer ($16.00 for 0.34 fl. oz.) to complement it. This shade is part of the North America and Europe/Africa portions of the collection, so it will be available both online and in-store. Myth is described as “light neutral nude.”

When you layer the lipgloss over the matching lipstick, the end result is a milky peach-beige with very subtle silver micro-shimmer and pink undertones. The two don’t work especially well with each other, and it seems to cause some unevenness. The gloss and nail lacquer don’t match the lipstick at all–both of them are far warmer and peachier. I remember when I applied the gloss, I double-checked the label, because I thought perhaps I grabbed Peachstock! The gloss and nail lacquer do match fairly well, though.

Myth Lipglass is a milky peach beige with subtle silver sparkle. It’s mostly opaque but does settle into lip lines. The consistency of this shade was particularly thick–more so than most MAC Lipglasses. MAC 2N is slightly more orange and darker. MAC Ready or Not is darker. MAC Orange Tempera is pinker. MAC C-Thru is lighter, less peach. MAC Scottish Lilt is very similar but sheerer. (8, 8.5, 8, 8.5, 3, 4; B-)

Myth Lipstick is a pale pink-tinted beige nude with a creamy consistency. It has a satin finish, and it is part of the permanent range. There’s something about the consistency that makes this harder to apply just right; it sometimes tugs a bit. MAC Restrict is grayer. MAC Fleshpot is cooler-toned. MAC Happy Hibiscus is lighter. MAC Innocence, Beware! is a bit pinker and darker. (8.5, 9, 8.5, 8.5, 4, 4; B)

Myth Nail Lacquer is a pale peach beige with a cream finish. It’s opaque in two coats, but it is streaky on the first coat, so you’ll want to pay attention to how you apply the second coat to help cover the initial coat of polish. Rescue Beauty Lounge Sheer Nude is less warm, a little more beige. MAC Hangin’ Loose is a little darker and has shimmer. MAC Viva Glam Gaga 2 is browner. MAC Sandpiper is lighter, less peach. (8.5, 9, 8.5, 9, 4, 4; B)

MAC Lipsticks are vanilla-scented but taste-free. Satin finishes like Myth typically wear four to six hours on me, with lighter shades like this one wearing closer to four hours. I find Myth to be slightly on the drying side, especially if I wear it for four hours or more. MAC Lipglasses are also vanilla-scented but taste-free. They are very sticky and have a thick, borderline-goopy consistency. If you prefer gel-like, cushion-y glosses that feel lightweight on, I don’t recommend MAC Lipglass. Because of the tackier texture, MAC Lipglasses do tend to wear a full four hours on me, with some of the darker shades lasting up to six hours (with mostly the color lingering at that point).

Note: I am reviewing each “set” together. After I’ve reviewed all sixteen sets, I will do round-ups for each product type (so all lipsticks together) to deliver an overall Glossover rating. This rating is more indicative of the product type, as the rating that follows this post is an average across three totally different types of products. You can also see the individual scores listed after each product, which are listed in the same order as they are in the Glossover.

The Glossover

I'm not overly enthused with the quality of these three--I don't think any of them are of high quality, and while they're not the worst in their category, they're not the best. The gloss is the hardest to work with, and I did not like the way the gloss and lipstick layered together. It was a battle working with both!

Product

Pigmentation

Texture

Longevity

Application

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Where to Buy

This product can be purchased at the following retailers:

MAC, $14.50 each for Lipstick and Lipglass; $16.00 each for Nail Lacquer

Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.

Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!

See more photos & swatches!

MAC Myth Lipglass, Lipstick, Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Lipglass layered over Myth Lipstick, Myth Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Lipglass layered over Myth Lipstick (Diffused Flash)

MAC Myth Lipglass layered over Myth Lipstick (Studio Lighting)

MAC Myth Lipglass layered over Myth Lipstick

MAC Myth Lipglass

MAC Myth Lipglass

MAC Myth Lipglass

MAC Myth Lipglass

MAC Myth Lipglass (Diffused Flash)

MAC Myth Lipglass (Studio Lighting)

MAC Myth Lipglass

MAC Myth Lipstick

MAC Myth Lipstick

MAC Myth Lipstick

MAC Myth Lipstick (Diffused Flash)

MAC Myth Lipstick (Studio Lighting)

MAC Myth Lipstick

MAC Myth Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Nail Lacquer

MAC Myth Nail Lacquer

* Myth nail lacquer was a press sample; all other products from Fashion Sets were purchased by me